US President Donald Trump has, once again, said that India charges heavy tariffs which is the reason why the US hiked duties on Indian imports. In a post on TruthSocial, he said that Washington does very little business with New Delhi while the latter sells many things in the US.
“What few people understand is that we do very little business with India, but they do a tremendous amount of business with us. In other words, they sell us massive amounts of goods, their biggest “client,” but we sell them very little – Until now a totally one sided relationship, and it has been for many decades,” he said.
“The reason is that India has charged us, until now, such high Tariffs, the most of any country, that our businesses are unable to sell into India. It has been a totally one sided disaster! Also, India buys most of its oil and military products from Russia, very little from the U.S. They have now offered to cut their Tariffs to nothing, but it’s getting late. They should have done so years ago. Just some simple facts for people to ponder!!!” he added.
The remark comes hours after PM Narendra Modi met Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit. He also had bilateral meetings with the two leaders on the sidelines of the summit.
Trump imposed 50% tariffs on India, the highest after Brazil, stating that it was difficult for him to enter the Indian markets. Initially, a 25% duty was impose on Indian goods entering the US, and this later raised to 50% with 25% penalty on New Delhi for buying oil from Moscow.
Recently, a Trump aide had said that Russian oil was not the only reason for tariffs on India. He said that the slow progress of a trade deal between the two democracies also led to an increase in the import duties.
SCO summit: Trump’s tariffs bring the group closer
Apart from the regional agenda, the member nations of the SCO, especially India, China and Russia had one key business to deal this year – Donald Trump’s tariffs. Initially, China was targeted by the Trump administration raising tariffs to over 100%. The US had already imposed sanctions on Russia and called out India against buying oil from Russia.
He threatened massive tariffs on India earlier, after which the two sides got busy in huddle to shape a basic trade deal. However, even after weeks of negotiations, they couldn’t reach a common ground on a number of sectors.
China, meanwhile, called the US a “bully”, for imposing heavy duties on India. It said that this was the time for the Asian neighbours to come together against this “bullying”.
Modi meets Putin
PM Narendra Modi met Russia’s Putin on the sidelines of the SCO Summit on Monday. He took to X and said the two friendly countries stood “shoulder-to-shoulder” even in most difficult situations and their ties are crucial for global peace and stability.
The leaders’ meeting focused on expanding bilateral cooperation in economic, financial, and energy sectors.
“This is a reflection of the depth and scope of our Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership. India and Russia have always stood shoulder-to-shoulder even in the most difficult situations,” he said.
He added that that 140 crore Indians are “eagerly waiting” to welcome the Russian leader in India in December.